Two Loves One Heart
by Icefire149
Summary: Claire finally thought she understood love, but one day it proved her wrong. Sry bad summary, great story! Read and review please. NOW FINISHED! GrayxClairexCliff Who will she choose?
1. Chapter 1

**Icefire149 here with an all new story. Read and review please. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer- I do not own Harvest Moon or any of its characters**

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**Two Loves One Heart**

Love, is the most confusing emotion. It controls your heart in ways you can never imagine until you experience it firsthand. I once believed I understood love, but then one day it proved me wrong.

My life was going great. The small run down house I bought was now big and beautiful as ever. As well as the rest of my property. I was happy with my life but there was always that lingering feeling that something was missing.

~***~

The young woman brushed her long blonde hair behind her shoulders and continued out the door of her large farmhouse. Gazing out at her now prosperous farm she was not sure what to do next. Pulling out her axe she decided to chop some wood in preparation of winter. Today was a lovely, crisp fall day. Finding an old tree stump at the edge of her property the blond began chopping.

The rhythmic chopping always seemed to calm the young woman. But with one sudden crack the did not come from the wood she had to stop. The source of the unusual crack was her axe. The axe had a large crack in it that needed to be fixed.

"How lovely." she mumbled to herself feeling angry.

Knowing that her axe needed to be fixed she began walking towards town. Her destination, the blacksmith's shop.

It didn't take long to reach the blacksmith shop. The job of a blacksmith, working with ores, always intrigued the blonde. As she entered the bell of the door rang. Instantly she was hit with the poignant smell of smoke and hot metal. It didn't bother her, it just made her curious as to what the blacksmith and his apprentice were working on.

"Claire, welcome." said the old blacksmith Saibara appearing. Saibara was old and small with thinning white hair. But he was stronger than most of the young men in the town. Whenever the blonde had seen him he was in a good mood and smiling. But the blonde was never fooled, she knows that he has a hell of a temper that is seen by most. Especially by his grandson, Gray.

Instantly with that thought the blonde began glancing past the old blacksmith to see his grandson. With no luck the blonde looked back to Saibara.

"What can I do for you today?" the blacksmith said kindly.

"I was wondering if you could fix my axe." the blonde said taking her cracked axe out of her backpack. She handed it to the blacksmith.

He began inspecting it with his old tired eyes. After a moment the blacksmith said, "Of course I can fix it. Come back and get it in three days."

"Good." the blonde mumbled feeling better knowing her axe will be fixed. After paying the blacksmith she went to leave. Opening the door and taking a step she paused. "Thank you." she called turning around. But it was not the old blacksmith her eyes fell on. It was the two big blue eyes of Gray's that her own eyes locked with as she closed the door.

It was that moment that she realized that her heart was beating so fast for the first time in a long time. The blonde did not want to leave but to open the door and gaze back into the eyes of the blacksmith apprentice. But instantly that thought startled her. Its been a long time since she felt this way about any one. She began wondering why her heart was making her feel this way.

The blonde would have rather pulled her teeth out instead of waiting those three days to return to the blacksmith shop. Each day she felt more and more confused by her emotions. She clearly didn't know the blacksmith apprentice. Yet her heart skipped a beat with every thought of him. The blonde didn't know why she suddenly had feelings for Gray, but she liked it. She accepted that she liked him. Now her heart desired him to like her.

"Stay calm, remember to breathe." she kept mumbling to herself. Today was the day. The blonde could go and get her axe from Saibara, but what she wanted most was to see Gray.

Her hand was trembling as she reached for the door knob of the blacksmith shop. Stupid Claire! Stupid. Calm down! She hissed in her thoughts. The silly school girl crushing thing is not normal behavior of the blonde. So she tried to calm herself before entering. The last thing she wanted was to be seen acting like that. With one deep breath she opened the door in one swift motion.

Taking a step inside the blonde was hit with the smells of ores smelting. Instantly it took a calming affect on her. In that next moment she realized that no one was around. Normally seconds after the bell over the door rings Saibara appears immediately.

"Hello?" the blonde called feeling confused.

Waiting for an answer the blonde could hear nothing but the sounds of metals being worked. So someone must be here. She thought wondering who it was. In moments her heart was beating so hard and fast she thought it would explode.

"Hello?" she called again only this time a little louder.

Still nothing but the sounds of metals being works. Feeling a bit agitated the blonde decided to find the source of the noise. It didn't take that many steps until she found the source, Gray.

Gray was the tall and handsome blacksmith apprentice. The blonde knew little about him because Saibara, his grandfather, worked him harder than a pack mule. The boy rarely had a day off. The blonde wished that he would turn around so she could study his face. She only needed the few times that she saw him to know that he was one of the most handsome boys she had ever seen. She knew he had red hair even though she had never seen it. The boy never removed his blue hat. From what she had heard that hat was his pride and joy. But in the blonds opinion she was just happy that the hat didn't cover his bright blue eyes.

Gray had his back to the blonde as she watched him. He was concentrating on pounding the metal into a new tool.

The blonde wasn't sure what she should do to get his attention. A part of her did not want to face his temper. It's a known fact in town that it is a smart thing to choose your words carefully before talking to Gray. He can be easily angered. But on the other hand the blonde has never experienced it. She has only heard talk.

Taking another deep breath she said, "Hello? Gray?"

The boy froze for a moment, put the hammer down, and turned around. "What do you want." he said bluntly, his blue eyes shining in curiosity.

"BOY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" yelled Saibara closing the door to the shop behind him.

In that single moment the blonde became panicked and hid behind the blacksmith apprentice.

"I LEAVE FOR TEN MINUTES…"

"What are you doing?" Gray grumbled in a low voice that only I could hear.

"I don't like yelling. It scares me." the blond said in a panicked voice and hiding her face more.

"…AND I DON'T HEAR YOU DOING ANYTHING."

"It's ok. You don't need to be scared." he said in a soft voice and staying in front of the blond protectively.

"Thank you." the blond squeaked in a small voice.

"BOY WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING? ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?" Saibara yelled. He was a few feet from Gray now.

"Grandpa quiet please. You're scaring Claire."

The blonde was not fond at being called scared. She never liked being weak in anyway. In respond to the comment she jabbed Gray in the back, but not hard at all.

"Hey its true." he said playfully and taking a step forward.

The blonde rolled her eyes. Forgetting that she was scared just moments ago.

"Sorry about that Claire, but right now Gray has to go back to work. So if you don't mind you have to go." Saibara said nicely.

"I always have to work." The blonde heard Gray mumble in a very low voice.

The blonde nodded and began walking towards the door. Stopping for a moment she turned around. She froze for a moment because she realized both blacksmiths were watching her. "Saibara is my axe done being fixed yet?" the blonde said.

"Oh yes." he said going to the very back of the room for a moment.

The blonde's eyes went right to Gray. He was still watching her. Instantly she was smiling. Within seconds the young blacksmith apprentice's expression softened. But the moment was ended too soon as Saibara stepped in front of the blonde.

She took her axe back. "Thank you." she mumbled as she opened the door. As she closed it behind her she glanced back inside. Gray's expression was hardened once more as his grandfather began yelling at him. The sound of the yelling and Gray's hardened expression made the blond feel terrified again. But in that split second Gray's eyes shifted back to the blonde's. And in that second she felt calm and protected again. The feeling lasted as she went back to her house and replayed that visit to the blacksmiths again and again in her head.

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**I hope you all enjoyed this. I would love to know what you all thought of this. Remember this story will be a three shot! So the next part will be posted soon (hopefully). Lately I've been having internet issues. But I promise I'll get the next part posted soon! Later. : )**

**Hmmm……I wonder who else will be a love interest for Claire? Tell me who you think/want it to be.**


	2. Chapter 2

After that day a friendship formed between me and Gray. Everyday I would visit him. I loved talking to him. I started to see who he really is. Gray is nice and sweet, he loves to tease me but I love to tease him back. He turned out to be my best friend.

After a while I began wondering if Saibara was happy that Gray finally has a friend, or if he just saw me as a distraction to Gray's training. But to be honest it didn't bother me how he saw our friendship. I loved being around Gray, and from what I could tell he loved being around me too. He made me feel safe and protected and he could make me smile with just once single glance in my direction.

At that point I thought I knew what love was. I loved Gray, he was my best friend. I knew that what I felt was love. But just when I thought I had everything figured out everything changed.

~***~

The blonde was leaving the blacksmith shop on a cold but sunny winter day. She had just finished visiting Gray for now. The blonde had the biggest smile on her face. After visiting the blacksmith apprentice she always found it hard not to smile. She was always in a great mood after seeing Gray.

Before taking any steps further out into the cold she adjusted her light pink wool hat, scarf, and mittens. Then she made sure her white jacket was buttoned up. The blonde was never fond of the cold. Taking a step she began wondering where she would go next. She didn't want to go home yet but she did not want to be out in the cold much longer. Making up her mind she began walking towards the Inn.

It was not long until she noticed the sky grew dark and it was snowing. She never liked the cold but she always admired the beauty of the snow falling. To her dislike she arrived at the Inn too soon. The second she opened the Inn's door she was hit with an uncomfortable wave of hot air. The Inn was well heated but after being outside in the cold it took a bit to get used to the heat.

"Claire! Thank goddess you're here." Ann said running up to the blonde. Ann has always been a cheery girl. The blonde had never seen the girl without a smile. But today she looked tired. Her usually neat braided red hair was messy and falling out of the braid. Ann's forehead was shining with sweat and her eyes were black rimmed from lack of sleep. Her tidy and clean overalls were covered with dirt and some splatter from food.

"Are you ok?" the blonde asked feeling worried for her friend. The blonde knew Ann and her dad were the only ones who worked here. She was worried that Ann was being pushed too much.

"Yeah I'm fine. It's just been a really long day." the red head mumbled.

"Sit down take a break." the blonde said making Ann sit at the table next to them.

"I can't. There's too much to do." Ann said standing. "Anyways can you do me a big favor?" she said with begging eyes.

"How can I say no. You're working yourself to death."

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" Ann said looking a million times better.

"What do you need me to do?" said the blonde feeling suspicious that she just agreed to do something dreadful.

"Oh its nothing bad. I swear." Ann said like she was reading the blonde's thoughts. "I need you to take Cliff and Carter their lunches." the red head said shoving a tray into the blonde's hands.

The blonde looked down at the tray and realizes she now has to go back into the cold.

"Thank you." Ann said sincere and going back to clearing tables.

At least I get to watch the snow fall some more. The blonde thought as she began leaving the Inn.

The closer to the blonde got to the church the more she realized the snow was piling up quite quickly. She was more than thrilled when she reached the church doors. As she opened them she called, "Carter!"

The blonde closed the door and realized there was no response. "Carter!" she yelled louder and walking towards the end of the aisle.

"C-carter isn't here." stuttered a small voice.

Looking to her left the blonde saw Cliff sitting on the pew looking back at her. She really didn't know Cliff that well, but then no one really did. He came to Mineral Town around the same time as her and has been living at the Inn. Cliff is a cute boy around the blonde's age. He was watching her with his two big blue eyes. It was that moment that the blonde noticed how unique the boy's hair is. It was long, a light shade of brown, and in a pony tail. But it had streaks of blonde like Karen's hair.

"C-Claire are you ok?" he stuttered again.  
"Sorry. I was dazing out a bit." the blonde mumbled feeling a bit embarrassed. "Where did you say Carter was?" she said quickly wanting to change the subject.

"I said he wasn't here." Cliff said managing not to stutter.

"Do you know when he will be back? I'm delivering his lunch for Ann. She's busy down at the Inn. Oh yeah this should be your lunch." the blonde said handing Cliff his lunch.

"Thanks." Cliff mumbled.

The blonde walked up to the table in the front of the room and put the tray down. "Carter can have his lunch when he gets back." the blonde mumbled.

Looking back at Cliff who was just staring at his lunch the blonde wondered if she should say something. She has always been a bit shy around people she doesn't know, but she has never been in this situation before. The boy was just as shy, if not shyer than her! "I guess I'll see you later." the blonde mumbled.

Cliff met the blonde's gaze and nodded.

The blonde turned around and walked to the church's doors. Pushing hard the blonde realized the door wasn't moving one bit. "Oh no." the words fell from her lips.

Instantly Cliff got up and faced her, panic in his eyes. "What's wrong?" he said confident as ever.

"The door. We're snowed in." the words escaped her lips as she realized what was happening.

"No we can't be snowed in." Cliff said like he was trying to convince himself. He walked over to the blonde and tried to push the door open. "Why can't this be a pull door?" he mumbled low to himself.

"If it was a pull then all of the snow would be crashing inside on us right now." the blonde said smiling a small smile.

The boy just looked at her like he was hearing words for the first time in his life, but after a short silence he cracked a smile. "I guess you're right." he said grinning now.

~***~

That moment seemed to break the ice between Cliff and I.

Early that next morning the townspeople came to our rescue. The snow fell so fast that all it did was pile higher and higher. We were both beyond grateful to be rescued. But at the same time I think we both did enjoy our time together.

That night started our friendship. We spent the whole night just talking about everything. I found out more about that boy in those mere hours than the few years I've known him.

I found out how similar his personality is to my own. Under that veil of shyness is a really great boy. He is quite funny and sarcastic too. I couldn't believe it when I first heard the hint of sarcasm in his voice. I never thought he had it in him. After that night I just knew we were going to be great friends.


	3. Chapter 3

I always wondered why they say love is a complicated thing. I always thought I understood it. As far as I really knew was that I loved Gray more then anything else in this world. A lot of people in town thought he liked me too, but he never said or did anything to let me know. On the other hand I was happy with our friendship the way it was. But before I really knew it life seemed to twist in a bad way and I had to make the hardest choice I've ever had to make.

~***~

The blonde was happy because she finished harvesting her spring crops in record time. With all of her chores done she made her way to the blacksmiths shop.

Her schedule for a while has been after all of her chores are done she would go to the blacksmiths to visit Gray for a while. After that she would go to the church and visit Cliff for a while. Over the past season she had become very good friends with the young traveler. To the blonde he was never shy anymore, she has gotten to know his real personality.

"Hello." the blonde called as she shut the door to the blacksmiths behind her.

"Good morning Claire." Saibara said coming up to his desk at the front of the building. "Now let me guess you're here to see my grandson right?" he added with a slight smile.

The blonde nodded and smiled.

"He's back there somewhere." he said pointing to the back of the building.

"Thanks." she mumbled and walking towards the back of the building.

It didn't take long to find Gray. He was at the back table working as always.

"Hi Gray." the blonde said smiling.

Gray jumped a little and turned around quickly. His face was slightly red and he held his hands behind his back like he was hiding something. "H-hi" he said stuttering a bit.

"Whatcha doing?" the blonde said with a big smile.

"N-nothing." Gray said stuttering again and his face became even redder.

The blonde became very curious now. Grinning she said, "Then why are you hiding something behind your back?" The blonde tried to see what was behind the blacksmith apprentice but he kept blocking her.

"I'm not hiding anything." he said firm.

"Well fine then." the blonde said firm and feeling slightly annoyed. What is he up to. She wondered.

"Fine." he snapped.

After a long pause of Gray and the blonde glaring at each other she snapped, "Well why don't you walk away from that table?" She was hoping to trick him into moving so she could see what he didn't want her to see.

"I don't want to. You're not the boss of me." he said adamant.

"Fine then." the blonde snapped and turning around she stomped out of the blacksmith shop.

What the blonde didn't see was the hurt expression on the blacksmith apprentice's face as she stomped out of the building. He turned around and picked up the piece he was working on, a silver broach with a large sapphire. Gray just stared at the broach seeing nothing but the blonde's eyes.

The blonde was still annoyed when she stomped all the way to the church. She sat on the pew next to Cliff and just pouted.

"Why are you sulking?" Cliff asked turning to face her.

The blonde turned to face Cliff but the second she saw his smiling face she could feel her heart skip a beat then speed up. She could feel her eyes widen as she realized what was happening. It was like that day at the blacksmiths back a few seasons ago. The blonde began feeling startled.

"Claire? Is there something wrong?" Cliff said looking at the blonde startled himself.

Without saying anything the blonde got up and ran out of the church.

No, no, no! This can't be happening, can it? Why, why, why? I love Gray, don't I? Yes, yes, yes I do. Just at the thought of the boy the blonde's heart sped up and she could feel a smile play at her lips.

The blonde got back to her farm quite quickly and she instantly locked herself in her house. Crashing down on her bed her thoughts took over her attention.

Cliff is just a friend right? In her head she could picture the boy's smiling face and instantly her heart began racing. Why? How? How can I love two boys at the same time? Is it possible? Apparently it is. But who do I love more?

Over the next three days the blonde didn't leave her property. She just worked on her farm harvesting crops, caring for animals, tending to her fields. The blonde wasn't really sure if she could handle seeing both boys until she made her decision.

But the blonde found it difficult to make a decision. She loved both boys a lot and there were different things about each boys that she liked. With Gray she felt safe, he made her laugh and smile more than she normally does. He can make her happy as sunshine but at the same time he can make her be bristling with anger. Cliff on the other hand can argue with her but in a good way that makes her like him more and learn more about him. He can make her laugh and smile too but in a different indescribable way that makes her feel happy. Between both boys there was never a dull moment and the blonde loved every minute spent with both boys.

The blonde was inside her house during her little lunch break when she heard a knock on her door. Feeling sick in the pit of her stomach she had a good guess as to who it was at the door. Taking a deep breath she opened the door to see a smiling Cliff.

He looked quite nervous as he held a small pink cat mist flower towards the blonde. "H-hello C-Claire."

"Hi." the blonde mumbled. She took the pink cat mist flower and just stared at it.

"H-how are you doing? You haven't come to see me in days." Cliff said looking at the ground, his face becoming a vivid red hue.

"G-good." the blonde mumbled, her heart racing and her face was beginning to slightly blush.

"So where have you been? I haven't seen you since you ran out of the church the other day." he said still looking at the ground.

"I've been here working on my farm." the blonde said staring at the flower.

"Oh."

The blonde took a peek at the boy. He was still looking at the ground and his face was as red as a tomato. She just studied his face.

He was nervous but his sweet and innocent expression never left his face. He must really care about me if he came to see if I was ok. I must have worried him by not showing up for a few days after running out of the church. The blonde thought.

The more her thoughts wandered the more her heart raced. Do I really like Cliff? She wondered. Cliff glanced up at the blonde and instinctively she looked away. The way her breath stopped and her heart skipped a beat told her all she needed to know.

"Cliff I have something I need to do. I'll see you later." the blonde said tightening her grip on the door of her house. She was hoping he would leave so she could just think about everything.

"Oh, ok. I'll see you later." he said smiling, his eyes shinning. Cliff clearly did not want to leave but he turned around and began walking away.

"Bye." the blonde said not sure if Cliff could hear her.

"Bye." Cliff called as he left the blonde's property.

The blonde shut the door behind her as she entered her house. She crashed down on the couch and just started at the ceiling. She just wished she knew why her heart was being so difficult. She knew now that she really had feelings for Cliff. There was no hiding from that. But the thought of Gray still tugged on her heart strings. The blonde just wished she knew what to do.

It was not long later that there was another knock at the door. The blonde was not to happy to be snapped out of her thoughts. She angrily got up and answered the door to see Gray standing there looking nervous.

He only took one look at the blonde and his expression turned into shock. "Wow I didn't know you were still mad at me. Sorry." he said getting softer and softer until I could barely hear him say 'sorry'.

The blonde honestly felt like kicking herself. The sad puppy dog look in his eyes absolutely broke the blonde's heart. "No!" she said without thinking.

Gray's eyes widened and he took a step back out of confusion.

"I mean I'm not mad at you." the blonde mumbled. She could fell her face getting redder and redder from embarrassment.

"That's good, but why do you look pissed then?" he asked bluntly.

"Just a few things are bothering me, that's all." the blonde said faking a smile and scratching the back of her neck.

"It's got to be more than just a few things." he said looking her in the eyes.

"What makes you say that." she asked curious.

"One, you're faking a smile. Which means you want me to think everything is all ok when it clearly must not be. Two being that you are scratching the back of your neck. That's something called a nervous habit." he said grinning, just knowing that he was right.

The blonde could feel her annoyance level rise. She hated it when he was right and this time he was on the dot right. There was no way in hell that she was going to give him that satisfaction that he was dead on. "I have no idea where you got all of that stuff. It was just a normal smile and my neck was itchy." the blonde said flatly.

The blacksmith apprentice rolled his eyes. He clearly did not believe the blonde. So he just kept grinning knowing it was bothering her.

And it was. It was taking all of the blonde's strength not to smack his smug face. "So why am I graced with your presence? Shouldn't you be working or something?" the blonde snapped. She looked up at Gray and his expression was soft and was becoming an almost vivid red. Is he blushing? She wondered.

At that split second his eyes met the blonde's and she found that she couldn't look away. Her heart skipped a beat then speeded up as her face went through the hues of red. How does he do this? The blonde wondered. He makes me guilty in one second, pissed off in another, and happy in another. How does he do it?

Neither said anything nor did they take their eyes off each other. Gray handed the blonde a small black box without moving his gaze. Unwillingly the blonde looked down at the black box.

The blonde slowly opened the box no knowing what to expect. She quickly took a peak at Gray. His face was expressionless as he waited for the blonde's reaction to what is in the box. Looking back to the box the blonde took off the top of the box and just started stunned at what she saw. Inside was a beautiful silver broach with a large sparkling sapphire in the middle. Picking it up the blonde could then see the fine detail in the silver. "Its…..its beautiful." the blonde mumbled still studying it closely. She loved the fine detail in the silver and the sparkle of the sapphire.

The blonde looked up at the blacksmith apprentice. A big smile was on his face, his eyes were fixed on the broach. "Did you make this?" the blonde asked.

Gray's eyes went from the broach to the blonde's eyes and then his face became redder. His gaze met the blonde's and he nodded.

The blonde smiled and looked back at the broach. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

"Do you like it?" Gray asked taking a step forward.

"I love it." the blonde said looking him in the eyes. "Thank you." she mumbled.

"I'm just glad that you like it." he said smiling.

Just then Gray looked down at his watch. His face lost his happy expression as he looked up and said, "I really got to go. My grandpa only gave me five minutes to come over and I'm over that limit."

"Well its ok. If you got to go back to work then you got to go." the blonde said feeling her smile fade.

The blonde clearly did not want the blacksmith apprentice to go and the blacksmith apprentice clearly did not want to go. Unwillingly Gray began walking away.

"See you later." the blonde said.

"Of course." the blacksmith apprentice said turning around and smiling.

The blonde watched until he was out of sight. She really didn't want him to go. When he said he had to go she felt such a pang of sadness in her heart. When he was gone she went back inside of her house, closing the door behind her, and laid down on her bed. Every time she closed her eyes all she could see was Gray's smiling face. She could just picture Gray come through the door and say, "Screw work. I'd rather be here with you." and then kiss her.

Those thoughts caused the blonde's heart to beat so quickly it hurt a little. But all she wished was that her thoughts would happen. As she opened her eyes her gaze fell upon the small pink cat mist flower. The blonde could feel a small pang in her heart as she could picture Cliff's sweet face.

The blonde knew she loved him. He is sweet, cute, funny but he is not the guy for her. It was then that she realized that no matter how much she loved Cliff, it was Gray who held her heart.

Over the next few weeks the blonde had returned to her normal schedule of visiting each boy after her farm work. She felt better knowing who she wanted to be with. It took away that awkwardness that was there when she visited Cliff. But today both boys were acting odd. So each visit was cut short and left the blonde wondering what was going on. The blonde returned to her farm and decided to check on her animals.

The warm early summer breeze warmed her face as she made sure all of her cows were in the field. The blonde loved the summer weather. The warmth of the sun kissing her face as she worked comforted her. She hated the harsh cold it made her too uncomfortable. But summer was the time she was happiest and most comfortable to be outside.

"Claire?" called a familiar voice.

Snapping out of her thoughts the blonde looked in the direction where the voice came from.

The voice was Gray. He was leaning against the blonde's house and was just watching her stand out in her field enjoying the warm breeze.

"Hi." the blonde called as she walked towards Gray. Why is he here? I didn't get a tool upgraded, did I? The blonde thought. The closer the blonde got to the blacksmith apprentice the more she could tell how nervous he looked. He actually looked more nervous than he did when he gave her the broach. The blonde realized.

"Hi." the blacksmith apprentice mumbled, not even making eyes contact.

"What's up?" the blonde said smiling and hoping he would calm down.

"N-nothing m-much really." he mumbled looking down at the ground.

"Are you ok?" the blonde said taking a step forward. She was beginning to feel concerned for her friend.

"Y-yeah. I'm f-fine." he said in a low voice. He glanced up at the blonde and then looked away quickly.

"CLAIRE!" yelled Cliff running towards the blonde's property.

Both the blonde and the blacksmith apprentice looked in Cliff's direction. They watched as Cliff approached the blonde's property he tripped and fell. What fell out of his pocket caused both the blonde and the blacksmith apprentice to freeze. It was a blue feather.

The blonde knew that it is a Mineral Town tradition for a boy to give a girl a blue feather. It's a symbol of true love if the girl accepts it. It's how the people in this town propose to each other. As the blonde took a few steps toward Cliff to help him up she prayed that he was here to tell her he is going to give the feather to Ann. The blonde has known that for a while now that the Inn keepers daughter has had a thing for Cliff.

Gray remained frozen where he stood. He watched as the blonde walked towards Cliff and helped him up. His eyes remained fixated on the familiar blue feather. It was just like the one hidden in his own pocket.

"Are you ok?" the blonde said while helping Cliff up. She was just hoping he wouldn't say anything about the blue feather.

"Yes I am now." he said sweetly looking into the blonde's eyes.

The look made the blonde's heart melt.

"I hope I'm not interrupting something." he said glancing at Gray. "I wanted to give you"

"Yes you _are_ interrupting something." Gray said harshly and taking a few steps forward so he was in front of Cliff now.

"Well this _is_ important." Cliff snapped.

"You're interrupting something more important." Gray snapped back.

"Nothing is more important than what I need to give to Claire." Cliff said taking a step closer to Gray.

The blonde just stepped back and watched. From what she could tell, Cliff was trying to intimidate Gray but it was unsuccessful. Well it didn't help that Gray was a head taller than Cliff, but Cliff was not giving up easily.

After a long pause the blonde broke the silence by saying, "Cliff is you tell me what is so important will you then stop provoking a fight between you and Gray?"

Cliff gave Gray a smug look and took a step towards the blonde. Gray became nervous looking again. And the blonde began wondering if she should have told Gray to speak first.

"Claire." he began while looking the blonde in the eyes. His look was only broken by him bending down to pick up the blue feather.

"Claire I love you." Gray said steeping in front of Cliff. He put his hand in his jacket pocket and pulled out a blue feather.

Cliff froze where he stood. He was in complete and total shock.

The blonde was in shock too. She was not believing what was happening. She was speechless.

"Claire?" Gray said softly making the blonde's eyes shift from the feather to his own eyes.

"Yes." she whispered taking the feather.

Gray's face lit up as his smile became bigger.

But at that same second the blonde saw the hurt expression appear on Cliff's face. Taking a side step towards Cliff the blonde said, "You were going to give me that feather weren't you?"

His eyes met hers as he nodded. The blonde could feel the waves of pain coming off of him. With out thinking she hugged him. "Don't ever think that I don't love you. I do." She took a step back and looked at his confused face. "I just don't love you in the way you want me to. You are the best friend I never thought I would have and I don't want to ever lose you a friend."

Cliff still looked hurt but he gave the blonde a small smile. "I should go. Bye." he said walking away.

The blonde turned around to face Gray. He looked a bit sad. "Are you sure?" he asked looking the blonde in the eyes.

"I love you with all of my heart. Of course I will marry you." she said smiling.

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**Icefire149 here. I hope you all enjoyed this story. I had fun writing this entire story especially this 3,381 word part 3. Please review and tell me what you thought of this story, I would really appreciate it. And I got a new poll posted on my profile if you want to check it out. Thanks for reading! **


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